Hypermedia authoring and publishing system

ABSTRACT

The present invention comprises a novel system for authoring and publishing hypermedia works. The present invention includes a scrollable contents map window in which a graphical representation of a hypermedia work is displayed. The contents map window contains graphical lexia symbols representing the lexia of the hypermedia work, empty space, and other graphical and text elements. Links between lexia are not ordinarily displayed. Selecting a lexia symbol causes the corresponding lexia to be displayed in a lexia display window. The lexia symbols representing lexia may be arranged in the window in any configuration. Freely movable text labels and other graphical elements may be placed anywhere in the contents map window. Additional special purpose graphical elements may be placed in the contents map window to create relationships among lexia. In one embodiment, a number of different modes of the contents map window can be displayed. One mode is a caricature mode. In caricature mode, lexia are represented by novel, information rich, dynamic lexia symbols with enhanced mnemonic features and visual cues called “caricatures”. The mnemonic features and visual cues of a caricature, together with its position with respect to other elements in the contents map, provide means for uniquely visually identifying the underlying lexia. One embodiment of the invention includes a search function that allows an author or a reader to search some or all of the lexia of a work for specific words, phrases, or other items such as links. Lexia symbols of each lexia containing the searched for text are highlighted in the contents map window.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application is a divisional of U.S. utility application entitled,“HYPERMEDIA AUTHORING AND PUBLISHING SYSTEM,” having Ser. No.09/764,772, filed Jan. 16, 2001, which is a continuation of U.S. utilityapplication entitled, “HYPERMEDIA AUTHORING AND PUBLISHING SYSTEM”,having Ser. No. 08/723,301, filed Sep. 30, 1996, and issued as U.S. Pat.No. 6,268,851 on Jul. 1, 2001, all of which are incorporated herein byreference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of hypermedia authoring andpublishing systems.

2. Background Art

Hypertext and hypermedia refer to electronic documents or works fordisplay on electronic media such as computer display screen. Hypermediaworks do not have the serial structure of printed documents in whichinformation is presented to a reader in a fixed order. Instead,information is presented to a reader in an order interactivelydetermined by the reader.

In a hypermedia work, information is organized into individual portionscalled “lexia”. Lexia can be viewed as containers of data. Datacontained in lexia may include text, graphics, motion video and sounddata. A lexia of a hypermedia work may contain one or more embeddedlinks to other lexia. An example of a link is a highlighted word oftext. Selecting the highlighted word, for example using a mouse,initiates display of the lexia to which the highlighted word is linked.This lexia may contain additional links, both back to the previous lexiaand/or to other lexia or documents.

One common use of hypermedia is in computer software help files. FIG. 1is an illustration of an example lexia from a help file such as thatused in the Microsoft Windows™ operating system. As shown in FIG. 1,lexia 100 includes a title bar 110, a text window 115, and a button bar140. Title bar 100 contains the title of the lexia. For lexia 100, thetitle is “How to Use Help.” Text window 115 contains the data for lexia100, which in this case is text data describing the basic operations ofWindows Help. Text window 115 also contains a number of link activationareas that provide links to other lexia. These link activation areas,designated items 125, 130 and 135 in FIG. 1, are indicated in textwindow 115 by bold facing and underlining of the words that constitutethe links. Link activation area 125 consists of the word “links”. Linkactivation area 130 consists of the word “maximize”. Link activationarea 135 consists of the word “minimize.” Link activation areas 125, 130and 135 link particular locations of lexia 100 to other lexia.

Button bar 140 contains a number of additional link activation areas inthe form of buttons 120 a-120 b. Button 120 a, labeled “Contents”,provides a link to a table of contents lexia. Button 120 b, labeled“Back”, provides a link to the previously displayed lexia. Because thepreviously displayed lexia changes according to the path used to get tolexia 100, the lexia linked to by button 120 a changes over time. Thelink provided by button 120 a is therefore a dynamic link that links todifferent lexia at different times. Buttons 120 a and 120 b link lexia100 as a whole to other lexia.

FIG. 2 shows the lexia that is opened by activating link activation area125 (i.e. the word “links”) of lexia 100. As shown in FIG. 2, lexia 200contains a glossary entry for the term “Links”. Like lexia 100 of FIG.1, lexia 200 includes a data window 210, a title bar 215, and linkactivation buttons 220 a and 220 b. Lexia 200 also contains linkactivation areas 225 and 230 comprising the words “Help topics” and“pointer”, respectively.

The complex, dynamic inter-linked nature of a hypermedia work makes itdifficult for both authors and readers to form an accurate andmeaningful picture of the hypermedia work as a whole. Prior arthypermedia authoring and publishing (or reading) systems have attemptedto provide graphical representations of hypermedia works by focusing onways to show links between lexia.

One prior art graphical depiction of a hypermedia work is illustrated inFIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 3, this prior art system depicts each lexia asthe target of incoming links and the source of outgoing links. In theexample of FIG. 3, the hypermedia work consists of ten lexia,represented by boxes labeled “Lexia 1” through “Lexia 10”. Thehypermedia work is depicted by three repeated columns of the ten lexia.In the first column, Lexia 1-10 are identified by numbers 301-310, inthe second column by numbers 311-320, and in the third column by numbers321-330. A link from one lexia to another is shown as an arrow from thesource lexia to the target lexia. The second column shows all incomingand outgoing links for each lexia. For example, Lexia 2 has incominglinks from Lexias 1, 3, and 6. Accordingly, each of Lexias 1, 3 and 6contain a link to Lexia 2. Lexia 2 is shown as having outgoing links toLexias 1, 5 and 9. Accordingly, Lexia 2 contains links to Lexias 1, 5and 9. FIG. 5 is an alternative view of the prior art representation ofFIG. 3 showing only the incoming and outgoing links for Lexia 2.

The hypermedia work illustrated in FIG. 3 consists of only ten lexia.Even with this small number of lexia, FIG. 3 is confusing and complex.As a result, it does not provide a meaningful overview of the structureand content of the underlying hypermedia work. For a typical workcontaining several times the number of lexia shown in FIG. 3, thegraphical representation of FIG. 3 is even less satisfactory.

Another prior art method for graphically representing a hypermedia workis shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 4 shows the same hypermedia work shown in FIG.3. In the representation shown in FIG. 4, Lexia 1-10 are located atmovable locations in window 400. Links between lexia are shown as arrowsfrom the source lexia to the target lexia. The position of each lexiacan be changed by the user, for example by dragging with a mouse. As alexia moves, the arrows indicating links remain attached. As is evidentfrom FIG. 4, this representation of a hypermedia work also fails toprovide an easily understandable overview of the hypermedia work as awhole.

Authoring a hypermedia work involves creating each lexia to be includedin the work and connecting the lexia with appropriate links. A varietyof methods for creating and linking lexia are provided in the prior art.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,982,244 discloses a hypertext creation system in whichlexia are displayed in the form of cards containing text. A first, blankcard is created by activating the appropriate menu command. The blankcard is supplied with an “autolink” button. Selecting the autolinkbutton creates a second card automatically linked to the first, and alsocreates a link activation button on the first card. By choosing anappropriate menu command, the second card may also be provided with anautolink button allowing the creation of further links.

Another prior art hypertext creation system is the “Storyspace” softwareprogram from Eastgate Systems, Inc. In Storyspace, lexia called “writingspaces” are displayed as boxes on a computer display screen. A link fromone writing space to another is created by selecting the source writingspace, selecting an appropriate menu command, and selecting the targetwriting space. The link can be changed to a link from or to a particularlocation in a lexia by selecting either the source or target writingspace, choosing an edit link menu command, and identifying particulartext in the writing space as the beginning or end of the link, asappropriate.

Prior art hypermedia authoring and publishing systems, though providingbasic mechanisms for creating and displaying links between lexia, failto provide an easy to use authoring and reading environment that allowsauthors to easily create and organize and readers to easily navigate andcomprehend a hypermedia work.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises a novel system for authoring andpublishing hypermedia works, including hypertext documents. One featureof one embodiment of the present invention is a scrollable contents mapwindow in which a graphical representation of a hypermedia work isdisplayed. In one embodiment, the contents map window is displayedacross the top portion of a display screen, while a lexia display windowis displayed on the display screen below the contents map window. Thecontents map window contains graphical lexia symbols representing thelexia of the hypermedia work, empty space, and other graphical and textelements. Links between lexia are not ordinarily displayed. Selectingthe lexia symbol causes the corresponding lexia to be displayed in thelexia display window. The lexia symbols representing lexia may bearranged in the window in any configuration desired by the author,unconstrained by the actual structure of the underlying hypermedia work,and may be moved around at will by the author and/or a reader. The lexiasymbols may be arranged in any manner that aids the author, and/or areader in organizing and understanding the structure and content of thehypermedia work. Freely movable text labels and other graphical entitiesmay be placed anywhere in the contents map window to aid in creatingand/or reading the hypermedia work. In one embodiment, the presentinvention uses the method for navigating multiple independent windowedimages disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/298,215,attached hereto as Appendix 1.

In one embodiment of the invention, additional graphical entities may beplaced in the window to create relationships among lexia correspondingto lexia symbols that are placed on these additional entities. Forexample, one relation-creating graphical entity is a bar. This bar maybe placed anywhere in the window at any orientation. By itself, itperforms no function. However, if lexia symbols representing lexia areplaced on the bar, links are created between the lexia represented bythe lexia symbols according to the relative position of the lexiasymbols on the bar. In one embodiment, one end of the bar represents a“previous” direction and the other end a “next” direction. For any twolexia symbols placed adjacent to each other on the bar, “next” and“previous” links will be created between the underlying lexia. The lexiacorresponding to the lexia symbol placed closer to the “previous” end ofthe bar will be automatically supplied by the invention with a “next”button. Activating the “next” button from the lexia will bring up thelexia represented by the lexia symbol placed nearer the “next” end ofthe bar. Similarly, the lexia represented by the lexia symbol placedcloser to the “next” end will be given a “previous” button that links tothe lexia represented by the lexia symbol closer to the “previous” end.Lexia symbols may be moved around on the bar, inserted between otherlexia symbols on the bar, added or removed from the bar, with all thelinks between the underlying lexia automatically updated to correspondto the new arrangement. More complex configurations for the graphicalrelation-creating entity, for example a grid, may be used, creating morecomplex relationships between lexia.

In one embodiment of the invention, graphical elements displayed in thecontents map window provide “inheritance” characteristics and propertiesfor lexia symbols that are disposed on the graphical elements.

In one embodiment of the invention, a number of different modes of thecontents map window can be displayed. Different types of lexia symbolsare displayed in each mode. Each type of lexia symbol provides adifferent package of information about the underlying lexia. One mode isa basic mode that provides a fundamental view of the hypermedia work. Inthis mode, the type of lexia symbol used to represent a lexia is asimple symbol such as a bitmap. In one embodiment, the symbol used is acolored dot. This type of symbol provides little information about theunderlying lexia other than its relationship to the structure of thework as a whole. A second mode is a caricature mode. This mode providesmore detailed information about the lexia in the underlying work thanprovided by the basic mode. In this mode, the type of lexia symbol usedto represent a lexia is a novel, information rich, dynamic lexia symbolwith enhanced mnemonic features and visual cues called a “caricature”.The mnemonic features and visual cues of a caricature, together with itsposition with respect to other elements in the contents map, providemeans for uniquely visually identifying the underlying lexia.

A caricature is not simply a scaled down image of the underlying lexia,but is derived algorithmically from the content of the underlying lexia.As such, the caricature becomes both a distinctive symbol for the lexiaand a representation that aids an author and/or a reader in associatinglexia content with a particular caricature, and helps an author and/orreader remember this association during subsequent navigation through ahypermedia work.

For a lexia that is in the form of a page of text, one embodiment of theinvention represents the lexia as a caricature of the paragraphstructure of the underlying page. The caricature uses groups ofhorizontal lines to represent paragraphs of text. Although the paragraphconfiguration displayed by the caricature corresponds to the paragraphconfiguration on the underlying page, there is no direct one-to-onecorrespondence between the lines displayed by the caricature and thelines of text in the lexia. The lines displayed on the caricature changedynamically in response to changes made to the structure of theunderlying lexia.

In one embodiment, a caricature contains features that provideinformation about the access history of a lexia.

In one embodiment, a caricature for a lexia is originally displayed as asymbol such as a rectangle with sharply defined corners. As the lexiacorresponding to the caricature is repeatedly accessed, either by anauthor while creating a work or by a reader reading the work, the sharpcorners of the caricatures are smoothed. The more the underlying lexiais selected, the more the corners get rounded.

In one embodiment, the color of the caricature also provides informationabout the underlying lexia. The color of a caricature starts off abright color such as white or yellow. The longer the underlying lexia isnot selected, the darker the color of its caricature becomes. Thus it iseasy at a glance to recognize the most used and least used lexia.

Caricatures may include additional visual cues, such as a v-shaped notchalong an edge. In one embodiment, the position of the notch indicatesthe relative time, compared to other lexia, when the lexia was created.

Caricatures may also be provided with random or pseudo random featuresthat are not based on any feature of the underlying lexia but that areadded to a caricature to help distinguish the caricature from othercaricatures. In one embodiment, a v-shaped notch is generated at arandomized position along the top edge of the caricature to give thecaricature a unique appearance.

In one embodiment of the invention, a new lexia is created by moving apointer to an empty location in the contents map window and activating amouse button. A lexia symbol representing a new lexia is displayed atthe indicated location, and an initially empty lexia is displayed in thelexia display window. If the caricature mode of the contents map windowis active, the lexia symbol for the new lexia displayed in the contentsmap window is a caricature. An editing mode may be activated for thelexia display window. In the editing mode, editing tools are providedthat allow text and graphics and hypermedia links to be added to thelexia. As the content of the lexia is edited, the caricature displayedin the contents map window changes to reflect the changed content of thelexia.

One embodiment of the present invention includes a search function thatallows an author or a reader to search some or all of the lexia of awork for specific words or phrases. In one embodiment of the invention,all lexia containing the searched for text are highlighted in thecontents map window. A reader thus can easily locate and access thelexia containing the desired text.

In one embodiment of the invention, an author may elect to provide aviewer of the author's hypermedia work a contents map having a differentconfiguration than the contents map used by the author to create thework. In one embodiment, the author may designate that certain graphicalelements contained in the contents map be visible only to the author,and not to a viewer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a lexia.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of a lexia accessed by activating a linkcontained in the lexia of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an illustration of one prior art graphical representation of ahypermedia work.

FIG. 4 is an illustration of a second prior art graphical representationof a hypermedia work.

FIG. 5 is an alternate illustration of a portion of the prior artgraphical representation of FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is an illustration of a display screen from one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 7 is an illustration showing the relative position of the contentsmap window of the embodiment of FIG. 6 with respect to the contents mapas a whole.

FIG. 8 is an illustration showing how the position of the contents mapwindow relative to the contents map changes as the scrolling frame ismoved in the embodiment of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is an illustration of a contents map displayed at a “Fit inWindow” zoom level in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an illustration of a contents map of one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 11 is an illustration of a lexia display window of one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 12 a is an illustration of a display screen for one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 12 b is an illustration of a display screen for one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 12 c is an illustration of a display screen for one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 12 d is an illustration of a display screen for one embodiment ofthe present invention showing a caricature symbol.

FIG. 13 a is an illustration of one embodiment of a caricature symbol.

FIG. 13 b is an illustration of a second embodiment of a caricaturesymbol.

FIG. 13 c is an illustration of a third embodiment of a caricaturesymbol.

FIG. 14 is an illustration of a display screen for one embodiment of thepresent invention showing dynamic features of a caricature.

FIG. 15 a is an illustration of a display screen for one embodiment ofthe present invention showing a lexia and a corresponding caricaturesymbol.

FIG. 15 b is-an illustration of a display screen for one embodiment ofthe present invention showing a lexia and a corresponding caricaturesymbol.

FIG. 16 a is an illustration of caricatures of one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 16 b is an illustration of caricatures of one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 16 c is an illustration of caricatures of one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 16 d is an illustration of caricatures of one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 17 a is an illustration of a display screen showing how thecontents map window can be used to organize and create links betweenlexia in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 b is an illustration of a display screen showing how thecontents map window can be used to organize and create links betweenlexia in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 a is an illustration of a display screen during the creation ofa hypermedia work for one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 b is an illustration of the display screen of FIG. 18 a afterlexia symbols have been placed on a link creation element according toone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 c is an illustration of the display screen of an embodiment ofthe present invention in which ordered links created by an ordered linkcreation element are in the form of ordered lists.

FIG. 18 d is an illustration of the display screen of an embodiment ofthe present invention including a hierarchical link creation element.

FIG. 18 e is an illustration of the display screen of one embodiment ofthe present invention including a special purpose formatting element

FIG. 18 f shows an example of a link from a lexia to a special purposeelement in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 a shows a table link creation element of one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 19 b shows a table link creation element of one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 20 illustrates a search function provided by one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 21 is an example of a computer system that can be used to implementthe present invention.

FIG. 22 shows a multi-tiered navigation window of one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 23 is a block diagram of the process used to create a new lexia inone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 24 is a block diagram of the process used to display a caricaturein one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 25 is a block diagram of the process used to conform a caricatureto changes to the underlying lexia in one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 26 is a block diagram of the process used to modify links inresponse to changes to a link creation element in one embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth inorder to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. Itwill be apparent to one skilled in the art, however, that the presentinvention may be practiced without these specific details. In otherinstances, well-known features have not been described in detail inorder not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an illustration of a display screen displayed by oneembodiment of the present invention on a display device such as acomputer monitor. The embodiment of FIG. 6 operates on a computer systemusing a Windows™ operating system from Microsoft Corporation. As shownin FIG. 6, in this embodiment, the display screen 600 includes acontents map window 610 and a lexia display window 620. In theconfiguration shown in FIG. 6, contents map window 610 and lexia displaywindow 620 are arranged in a “tiled” configuration with contents mapwindow 610 taking up approximately the top two-fifths of display screen600 and lexia display window 620 taking up approximately the bottomthree fifths of display screen 600. However, contents map window 610 andlexia display window 620 may be sized and positioned differently, andmay overlap, as is well known in the art

In the embodiment of FIG. 6, contents map window 610 shows a portion ofa contents map that graphically displays the lexia of a hypermedia work.Contents map window 610 is scrolled using scrolling frame 640 ofnavigation window 630 using the method disclosed in U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 08/298,215 for “Method for Navigating MultipleIndependent Windowed Images”, a copy of which is attached hereto asAppendix 1. As shown in FIG. 7, the relative position of scrolling frame640 with respect to navigation window 630 is the same as the relativeposition of contents map window 610 with respect to the entire contentsmap 710, shown in outline in FIG. 7. Dragging scrolling frame 640relative to navigation window 630, for example using a mouse, causescontents map window 610 to move with respect to contents map 710 in thesame manner as scrolling frame 640 is moved relative to navigationwindow 630. For example, dragging scrolling frame 640 so that it ispositioned at the lower left corner of navigation window 630 causescontents map window 610 to scroll so that it is positioned at the lowerleft comer of contents map 710. The resulting configuration is shown inFIG. 8.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the zoom level of contentsmap window 610 can be changed as is well known in the art such that thescale of the portion of the contents map 710 shown in contents mapwindow 610 can be varied. In one embodiment, the zoom levels include a“Fit in Window” level in which all of contents map 710 is displayed incontents map window 610. FIG. 9 shows an embodiment in which thecontents map 710 is displayed in contents map window at a “Fit inWindow” zoom level. As shown in FIG. 9, if all of the contents map 710is displayed in contents map window 610, navigation window 630 andscroll frame 640 are not displayed.

FIG. 10 shows a contents map 1000 of one embodiment of the presentinvention. Depending on the zoom level selected for contents map window610, all or part of contents map 1000 may be displayed in contents mapwindow 610 at one time.

Contents map 1000 of FIG. 10 displays a newly created hypermedia workthat does not yet contain any lexia. At this stage, contents map 1000consists of a background image. In the embodiment of FIG. 10, thisbackground image consists of a single color background 1010 withdifferent colored grid lines creating an image of boxes 1020 a-1020 d atthe left end of contents map 1000. In other embodiments, the backgroundimage may consist of any combination of pictures, drawings, text, andany other graphic elements. The contents map may be provided with analignment grid with a selectable “snap-to” capability to assist in theplacement and alignment of graphical elements placed on the contentsmap.

In the embodiment of FIG. 10, boxes 1020 a-1020 d do not provide anyfunctionality other than providing visually distinguishable areas onbackground 1010. These distinguishable areas may be used by an authorfor organizing lexia into different author-defined groups during thecreation of a hypermedia work. In other embodiments, means other thanlines and boxes (including, without limitation, other geometric shapesor distinctive colors, borders, backgrounds or designs) may be used tovisually distinguish specific areas from other areas of background 1010.

FIG. 11 illustrates a lexia display window 1100 of one embodiment of thepresent invention. Lexia display window 1100 is used to display thecontents of a lexia when a lexia is being edited or read. In oneembodiment of the invention, lexia display window 1100 providesdifferent functionality in an editing mode than in a viewing mode.

As shown in FIG. 11, lexia display window 1100 includes a title bar1120, a summary window 1110, and a main lexia display area 1130. Lexiadisplay window 1100 is shown in FIG. 11 in a state in which no lexia isbeing displayed. If a lexia were being displayed, title bar 1120 woulddisplay the title and summary window 1110 a brief summary of the lexiabeing displayed. The content of the lexia would be displayed in mainlexia display area 1130.

FIGS. 12 a and 12 b illustrate the creation of a new lexia in oneembodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 12 a, in thisembodiment, a new lexia may be created by moving a cursor 1210 to adesired location in contents map window 610, for example by means of amouse, and entering an appropriate keyboard command or clicking a mousebutton. In response to clicking a mouse in contents map window 610, aninitially empty lexia is created as shown in FIG. 12 b. Lexia symbols1220 and 1230 representing the newly created lexia appear in contentsmap window 610 and navigation window 630, respectively, at the locationcorresponding to the position at which the mouse button was clicked. Inthe embodiment shown in FIG. 12 b, lexia symbols 1220 and 1230 are basicsymbols in the forms of dots. Dot 1230 in navigation window 630 issmaller than dot 1220 in contents map window 610. In addition, a title1240 for the newly created lexia is displayed in title window 1120, andthe contents of the newly created lexia is displayed in main lexiadisplay area 1130. In this embodiment, a user changeable default titleis initially provided for a newly created lexia. In this example, thedefault title is “1st Created Lexia,” and the newly created lexia isempty. Accordingly, no contents is shown initially in main lexia displayarea 1130.

FIG. 23 is a block diagram of the process used to create a new lexia inone embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 23, at block2310, a contents map window, a navigation window, and a lexia displaywindow are displayed on a display screen such as a computer monitor. Anotification is received at block 2315 that a user has initiated a lexiacreate command, for example by clicking a mouse button. The cursorposition at the time the command was given is also received. Lexiasymbols for a new lexia, including a lexia symbol for the contents mapwindow and a lexia symbol for the navigation window, are generated atblock 2320. These lexia symbols are displayed at positions correspondingto the cursor position received at block 2315 in the contents map windowand the navigation window, respectively, at block 2325. A storage spacefor the new lexia is created at block 2330, and a default title, such as“2nd Created Lexia”, is assigned to the new lexia at block 2335. The newlexia is displayed in the lexia display window at block 2340.

In one embodiment of the invention, lexia display window 1100 has anedit mode and a viewing mode. When the edit mode is active, a number ofword processing tools, as are well known in the art including text,graphics, table, and spreadsheet tools are available for enteringcontents into the currently displayed lexia.

FIG. 12 c shows the newly created lexia of FIG. 12 b after the title hasbeen changed from its default title and after text has been added tomain lexia display area 1130. In addition, a summary 1245 has been addedto summary window 1110. As shown in FIG. 12 c, the contents of thelexia, as shown in main lexia display area 1130, now includes a heading1250 and two paragraphs of text 1255 and 1260, respectively.

In one embodiment of the invention, title 1240 and summary 1245,although they are part of the underlying lexia, are not visible whenlexia display window 1100 is in a viewing mode. A lexia may containadditional data fields that are part of the lexia that are accessible inthe edit mode and not in the viewing mode of display window 1100. Forexample, there may be a “nickname” field for a nickname that may begiven to a lexia by the author, or an index field that contains a numberor other index, or a keyword field that contains keywords for the lexia.

In one embodiment of the invention, contents map window 610 can bedisplayed in different modes as well as in different zoom levels.Different modes display different types of lexia symbols to representlexia in contents map window 610. For example, for the mode shown inFIGS. 12 b and 12 c, the type of lexia symbol displayed for a lexia is asimple symbol such as dot.

A different display mode for contents map window 610 is shown in FIG. 12d. In FIG. 12 d, contents map window 610 also is shown at a greater zoomlevel than in FIGS. 12 b and 12 c. Contents map window 610 thus shows asmaller portion of the whole contents map than in FIGS. 12 b and 12 c.Accordingly, in FIG. 12 d, scrolling frame 640, which corresponds to theportion of the contents map displayed in contents map window 610,comprises a smaller portion of navigation window 630 than in FIGS. 12 band 12 c.

For the display mode of contents map window 610 of FIG. 12 d, the lexiasymbols used to represent lexia are information rich, dynamic lexiasymbols with enhanced mnemonic features and visual cues called“caricatures”. The mnemonic features and visual cues of a caricature,together with its position with respect to other elements in thecontents map, provide means for uniquely visually identifying theunderlying lexia.

The visual cues of a caricature identify distinguishing features of theunderlying lexia. A caricature is not a static, predefined symbol, butis constructed dynamically based on the content and history of theunderlying lexia. A caricature, as its name implies, is not generally anexact, miniature replica of the underlying lexia. Instead, it is aseparate graphical image that is constructed so as to exaggerate certaindistinguishing aspects as, for example, distinctive features of thevisual appearance of the underlying lexia. As such, the caricaturebecomes both a distinctive symbol for the lexia and a representationthat aids an author and/or a reader in associating lexia content with aparticular caricature, and helps an author and/or reader remember thisassociation during subsequent navigation through a hypermedia work. Inone embodiment, the appearance of a caricature is periodically refreshedto reflect changes that may have occurred in the underlying lexia. Inone embodiment, the appearance of a caricature is refreshed after eachchange that is made to an underlying lexia. In one embodiment, theappearance of a caricature for a lexia is frozen upon expiration of apredetermined time limit or upon user command.

In FIG. 12 d, caricature 1270 represents “Overview” lexia 1290 displayedin lexia display window 620. As shown in FIG. 12 d, Overview lexia 1290is a text lexia. Overview lexia 1290 contains a heading 1250 and twoparagraphs of text 1255 and 1260, respectively. Paragraph 1255 containstwo full lines and one partial line approximately two-thirds of a fullline in length. Paragraph 1260 contains three full lines of text and apartial fourth line containing a single word. Visual distinguishingfeatures of Overview lexia 1290 are a short heading, a relatively shortfirst paragraph whose last line is two-thirds of a full line in length,and a second paragraph somewhat longer than the first paragraph whoselast line is a single word.

In the embodiment of FIG. 12 d, caricature 1270 consists of a stylizedimage of a page of text, reflecting the fact that the underlying lexiais a text lexia. As shown in greater detail in FIG. 13 a, caricature1270 consists of a rectangle 1274 inside of which are lines representingparagraphs of text. Specifically, caricature 1270 includes a short boldline 1271; a first paragraph 1272 consisting of two lines, one of whichfull length and the other approximately two-thirds of a full length; anda second paragraph 1273 consisting of three lines, two of which are fulllength and one of which is a short stub. Short bold line 1271 ofcaricature 1270 represents underlined heading 1250 of Overview lexia1290. First paragraph 1272 of caricature 1270 represents first paragraph1255 of Overview lexia 1290. Second paragraph 1273 of caricature 1270represents second paragraph 1260 of Overview lexia 1290. Althoughparagraphs 1272 and 1273 of caricature 1270 contain two and threehorizontal straight lines, respectively, while paragraphs 1255 and 1260of underlying Overview lexia 1290 contain three and four actual lines oftext, respectively, the relative shapes and sizes of paragraphs 1272 and1273 of caricature 1290 are visually generally the same as the relativeshapes and sizes of paragraphs 1255 and 1260 of Overview lexia 1290.Thus although caricature 1270 is not an exact replica of Overview lexia1290, the relative shapes and sizes of its visual features associatecaricature 1270 visually with Overview lexia 1290. Further, the relativeshapes and sizes of its visual features distinguish caricature 1270 fromcaricatures representing lexia having different paragraph forms.

FIGS. 13 b and 13 c illustrate other embodiments of caricatures forOverview lexia 1290. However, it will be understood that the caricaturesof the present invention are not limited to the specific caricaturesshown. In addition to the example caricatures of FIGS. 13 a, 13 b, and13 c, a wide variety of other caricatures that visually distinguish onelexia from another by emphasizing distinctive features can be used.

In caricature 1310 of FIG. 13 b, a separate straight line is used torepresent each line of text in the underlying lexia 1290. Each fulllength straight line in caricature 1310 represents a full line of textin the underlying lexia and each partial length straight line incaricature 1310 represents a partial line in the underlying lexia.Caricature 1310 consists of bold line 1315 representing heading 1250 oflexia 1290, first paragraph 1320 consisting of two full length straightlines and one partial length straight line representing first paragraph1255 of lexia 1290, and second paragraph 1325 consisting of three fulllength straight lines and one partial length straight line representingsecond paragraph 1260 of lexia 1290.

In caricature 1350 of FIG. 13 c, solid blocks 1355, 1360, and 1365represent heading 1250 and paragraphs 1255 and 1260, respectively, oflexia 1290. The shapes of blocks 1355, 1360 and 1365 correspond to thegeneral relative shapes of the corresponding blocks of text of theunderlying lexia.

FIG. 14 illustrates how the appearance of a caricature of the presentinvention dynamically changes to reflect changes to the underlying lexiarepresented by the caricature. FIG. 14 shows the display screen of theembodiment of FIG. 12 d after a new paragraph 1410 has been added toOverview lexia 1290. New paragraph 1410 may be added, for example, bytyping in the new text using the word processing tools in the editingmode of lexia display window 620. In the embodiment of FIG. 14, additionof paragraph 1410 has made the text area of lexia 1290 larger than lexiadisplay window 620. Accordingly, a scroll bar 1420 and a scroll button1425 have been added to lexia display window 620 to allow the scrollingof the portion of lexia 1290 displayed in lexia display window 620.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 14, new paragraph 1410 contains the samenumber of lines as existing paragraph 1260, all of which are essentiallyfull-width. As shown in FIG. 14, addition of paragraph 1410 to lexia1290 causes a corresponding paragraph representation 1415 to be added tocaricature 1270 displayed in contents map window 610. Because newparagraph 1410 has the same number of lines as existing paragraph 1260,paragraph representation 1415 corresponding to paragraph 1410 has thesame number of straight lines, three, as paragraph representation 1273corresponding to paragraph 1260. Because the text lines of new paragraph1410 are essentially full-width lines, the lines of paragraphrepresentation 1415 of caricature 1270 are also full width.

FIGS. 15 a and 15 b show two other examples of lexia and correspondingcaricatures.

FIG. 15 a shows a lexia 1510 called “Lexia Data” in lexia display window620 consisting of a heading 1511 and a two-line paragraph 1512. Thecorresponding caricature 1515 displayed in contents map window 610features a short bold line 1516 representing heading 1511 and aparagraph representation 1517 corresponding to paragraph 1512 consistingof a full width straight line and a short straight line.

FIG. 15 b shows a lexia called “Links” in lexia display window 620consisting of a heading 1521 and a two-column, four entry table 1522.The corresponding caricature 1525 displayed in contents map window 610features a short bold line 1526 representing heading 1521 and a tablerepresentation 1527 for table 1522 consisting two columns of straightlines corresponding to the structure of the text in table 1522.

In the embodiments of caricatures shown in FIGS. 14, 15 a and 15 b, theaspect ratios of the paragraph and table representations used in thecaricatures are similar to the aspect ratios of the actual paragraphsand tables in the underlying lexia. However, it is not necessary tomaintain the same aspect ratios in a caricature as in the underlyinglexia. Also, it is not necessary to have the same number of paragraphrepresentations in a caricature as there are paragraphs in theunderlying lexia. If the lexia contains a table, it is not necessary fora table representation used in the corresponding caricature to containthe same number of columns and/or rows as the original table.

The caricatures of the present invention can be used to improverecognition of the underlying lexia by exaggerating visual features thata person typically uses to distinguish one item from another and byminimizing those features that a person tends to ignore. For purposes ofdistinguishing one caricature from another and for associating acaricature with the content of the underlying lexia, the existence of atable, or the fact that a paragraph or heading is centered, may be moreimportant than the configuration of the table or the length of theparagraph or heading. Similarly, for a very long lexia, the appearanceof the first portion of the lexia may be sufficient to distinguish thelexia from other lexia. Accordingly, only a representation for the firstportion of the lexia need be displayed in the caricature. For example,for a lexia containing ten paragraphs, it may be sufficient to displayrepresentations of only the first four paragraphs in the correspondingcaricature. Thus, by appropriately choosing the criteria used forcreating caricatures, the vertical dimension of a caricature, ifdesired, can be compressed significantly compared to the verticaldimension of the underlying lexia. A vertically long lexia can then berepresented by a relatively shorter caricature.

FIGS. 16 a-16 d illustrate embodiments of caricatures of the presentinvention that provide information about characteristics of theunderlying lexia other than information about the contents or visualappearance of the lexia.

FIG. 16 a illustrates embodiments of caricatures of the presentinvention 1600, 1605 and 1610 in which the degree to which the cornersof each caricature are rounded corresponds to the number of times thatthe lexia represented by a caricature has been selected by an authorduring editing or by a viewer during viewing. The rounding of corners ofcaricatures is a metaphor for the tendency of paper documents to becomedog-eared the more they are handled.

In FIG. 16 a, caricature 1600 has sharp corners, caricature 1605 hasslightly rounded corners, and caricature 1610 has more rounded corners,indicating that of these three caricatures, the lexia represented bycaricature 1610 has been selected the most number of times and the lexiarepresented by caricature 1600 the least. It will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art that the degree of rounding of corners may signifysome characteristic other than the relative number of times a lexiarepresented by a caricature has been selected, that the rounding can beapplied to less than all corners of a caricature, and that other aspectsof a caricature can be changed to indicate the relative number of timesthe lexia represented by a caricature has been selected.

FIG. 16 b illustrates embodiments of caricatures of the presentinvention 1615, 1620 and 1625 in which coloring of the background of acaricature represents information about the caricature. In oneembodiment, the background color of a caricature varies from white tosuccessively darker shades of gray. In this embodiment, the shade of thebackground color of a caricature corresponds to the relative length oftime since the last time the lexia represented by a caricature wasselected. This progressive shading with time is a metaphor for thetendency for paper documents to become faded and yellowed over time.

In FIG. 16 b, the background color of caricature 1615 is a lighter shadethan the background color of caricature 1620, which is turn is a lightershade than the background color of caricature 1625. Accordingly, thelexia represented by caricature 1615 is the most recently selected lexiaof the lexia represented by caricatures 1615, 1620 and 1625, and thelexia represented by caricature 1625 is the least recently selected. Itwill be apparent to those skilled in the art that the relative length oftime since the lexia represented by a caricature has been selected maybe indicated on a caricature by some other means, that different colorand shading schemes can be used, and that the variation in color ofcaricatures may indicate information other than the relative time sincethe lexia represented by a caricature has been selected. For example, inone embodiment, the variation of color over time represents the timesince the lexia was created instead of the time since the lexia was lastselected.

FIG. 16 c illustrates embodiments of caricatures of the presentinvention 1630, 1635 and 1640 in which the location of a notch along thetop edge of a caricature is used to provide a distinguishing feature fora caricature. The notch is a metaphor for pages being torn from a pad.In one embodiment, the location of the notch indicates a relative timeat which the lexia represented by a caricature was created. In anotherembodiment, the notch is a random or pseudo random feature whoseposition is not based on any feature of the underlying lexia but that isadded to a caricature to help distinguish the caricature from othercaricatures. In one embodiment, instead of a single notch being placedat a random location, different numbers of notches are placed indifferent locations to provide a randomized distinctive appearance. Forexample, one caricature may have a single notch near the center of itstop edge, while another may have one notch to the left and two notchesto the right of the center of the top edge. It will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art that other features other than the location andnumber of notches can be used to add distinctive random features to acaricature.

In the embodiment of FIG. 16 c, the nearer a notch is to the top leftcorner of a caricature, the earlier a lexia represented by a caricaturewas created. Of caricatures 1630, 1635, and 1640 in FIG. 16 c,caricature 1630 has a notch 1631 closest to the caricatures top leftcorner. Accordingly, the lexia represented by caricature 1630 wascreated earlier than the lexia represented by caricatures 1635 and 1640.Caricature 1640 has a notch 1641 furthest from its top left comer.Accordingly, the lexia represented by caricature 1640 was created laterthan the lexia represented by caricatures 1635 and 1640. It will beapparent to those skilled in the art that the relative time at which alexia is created can be represented by other means than the position ofa notch along the top edge of the caricature representing the lexia,that a notch may be located on other edges than a top edge of acaricature, that indications other than a notch can be used, and thatthe position of a notch along an edge of a caricature can provide otherinformation than the relative time at which the lexia represented by acaricature was created.

FIG. 16 d shows embodiments of caricatures of the present inventionincorporating features of the caricatures of FIGS. 14, 15 a-b, and 16a-c.

Of the three caricatures 1645, 1650 and 1655 of FIG. 16 d, caricature1645 has the sharpest corners, the darkest shading, and a notch furthestfrom its top left corner. Accordingly, relative to the three lexiarepresented by caricatures 1645, 1650 and 1655, the lexia represented bycaricature 1645 has been selected the least, was last selected a longertime ago, and was the last created. Caricature 1645 also indicates thatthe underlying lexia contains a table with four entries.

Caricature 1655 has the lightest shade of color, the most roundedcorners, and a notch along the top edge closer to the top left cornerthan caricature 1645 but further from the top left corner thancaricature 1650. Accordingly, the lexia represented by caricature 1645was selected more recently than the lexia represented by caricatures1645 and 1655, has been selected more often than the other two lexia,and was created after the lexia represented by caricature 1650 butbefore the lexia represented by caricature 1645. Caricature 1655 alsoindicates that the underlying lexia contains a heading and a singleshort paragraph.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other aspects ofthe visual appearance of a caricature can be used to provide informationabout the underlying lexia. Such other aspects can include, withoutlimitation, the size and/or aspect ratio of a caricature, thecaricature's color scheme, designs, text and graphics that are includedin a caricature, animation exhibited by a caricature, and other visualfeatures.

FIG. 24 is a block diagram of the process used to display a caricaturein one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 24, when anew lexia is created, a default caricature, such as a empty rectanglewith sharp corners, is generated at block 2405. At block 2406, arandomized appearance feature, such as a notch along a randomizedlocation at the top edge of the caricature, is generated at block 2406and added to the caricature. A lexia selection counter that counts thenumber of times the lexia represented by the caricature has beenselected is initialized to zero at block 2408, and the caricature isdisplayed in the contents map window at block 2410. The lexia selectioncounter is incremented by one at block 2412, and the appearance of thecaricature is conformed to the lexia selection counter value at block2414. The appearance of the caricature changes at certain predeterminedvalues of the lexia selection counter, for example in the mannerdescribed above with respect to the embodiment of FIG. 16 a. For a newlexia for which the lexia selection counter is at an initial value of 1,no change in appearance of the caricature is required.

At block 2416, the caricature is highlighted in the contents map windowreflecting that the lexia corresponding to the caricature is thecurrently selected lexia. At block 2418, a determination is made as towhether the lexia represented by the caricature is still selected. Ifthe lexia is still selected, a determination is made at block 2420 as towhether any changes have been committed to the lexia, for example bytyping in text in the lexia display window and executing a “save”command. If no changes have been committed, the process returns to block2418.

If changes have been committed, the appearance of the caricature isconformed to the changes to the lexia at block 2422, and the processreturns to block 2418.

If it is determined that the lexia represented by the caricature is nolonger selected at block 2418, the highlighting of the caricature in thecontents map window is removed at block 2424 and a not selected timer isstarted at block 2426. The not selected timer keeps track of the amountof time that has passed since the last time the lexia represented by thecaricature was selected. The next selection of the lexia is awaited atblock 2428.

At block 2430 a determination is made as to whether the lexia has beenselected. If the lexia has not been selected, a determination is made atblock 2436 as to whether the timer increment that triggers a change inthe appearance of the caricature has been reached. If that timeincrement has not been reached, the process returns to block 2428. Ifthe time increment has been reached, the appearance of the caricature isconformed to the value of the not selected timer at block 2438. Forexample, the color of the caricature may be changed in the mannerdescribed above with respect to the embodiment of FIG. 16 b. The processthen returns to block 2428.

If it is determined at block 2430 that the lexia has been selected, thenot selected timer is reset to zero at block 2432 and the appearance ofthe caricature is conformed to a not selected timer value of zero atblock 2434. The process then returns to block 2412.

FIG. 25 is a block diagram of the process used to conform a caricatureto changes to the underlying lexia in one embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown in FIG. 25, the contents of the lexia is examined atblock 2510 and the distinguishing features, such as headings,paragraphs, tables, graphic frames, etc., are identified at block 2520.Representations for the identified distinguishing features are generatedat 2530, and, in the embodiment of FIG. 25, the representations aresized to fit the caricature at block 2540.

In one embodiment, instead of sizing the representations for the contentof the underlying lexia to fit the caricature as in the embodiment ofFIG. 25, the representations are “clipped” so that only the portions ofthe representations that fit into a caricature are included in thecaricature. For example, if a lexia contains ten paragraphs for whichthere are ten paragraph representations, but the caricature andparagraph representations are sized such that only the first three and ahalf of the ten paragraph representations fit into the caricature, thenonly those first three and a half paragraph representations are includedin the caricature. In one embodiment, if the representations for thecontent of a lexia generated using one method result in representationsof which only a portion fit a caricature, representations are generatedusing a different method to attempt to generate representations agreater portion of which will fit a caricature.

FIGS. 17 a and 17 b show one way in which the contents map window of thepresent invention can be used by an author of a hypermedia work toorganize and create links between lexia in one embodiment of the presentinvention. FIG. 17 a shows an embodiment of a display screen in whichthe display mode for the contents map window is the same as in FIG. 12c. In this display mode, lexia are represented by colored dots. FIG. 17b shows an embodiment of a display screen in which the display mode forthe contents map window is the same as in FIG. 12 d. In this displaymode, the lexia symbols used to represent lexia are caricatures.

The display screens 1700 shown in FIGS. 17 a and 17 b both include acontents map window 1710, a lexia display window 1720, a navigationwindow 1730, and a scrolling frame 1740. Contents map window 1710contains lexia symbols representing three lexia. In FIG. 17 a, the lexiasymbols used to represent the three lexia are colored dots 1745, 1750and 1755, respectively. In FIG. 17 b, the lexia symbols used torepresent the three lexia are caricatures 1746, 1751, and 1756,respectively. In both FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, the three lexia arerepresented in navigation window 1730 by small colored dots 1760, 1761,and 1762 respectively.

The portions of the contents map shown in contents map window 1710 ofFIGS. 17 a and 17 b contain grid lines 1765 that form a box 1770 incontents map window 1710. Box 1770 has no function other than providinga visually separate area in the contents map that can be used by theauthor to organize lexia. In FIG. 17 a, dots 1750 and 1755, representingtwo lexia, have been placed by the author of in box 1770. Similarly, inFIG. 17 b, caricatures 1751 and 1756 have been placed by the author inbox 1770.

The embodiments of FIGS. 17 a and 17 b allow an author and a viewer tocreate freely movable floating text labels that can be positionedanywhere on the contents map. These floating text labels allow an authoror viewer to place text that is useful to the author or viewer adjacentto individual lexia symbols or groups of lexia symbols to aid the authorin organizing and authoring and the viewer in viewing and understandingthe hypermedia work. In one embodiment of the invention, an author canchoose whether or not a floating text label created by the author ismade visible to a viewer of the created hypermedia work.

In FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, a floating text label 1766 containing the text“Glossary Items” has been placed by the author in box 1770. Floatingtext label 1766 signals to the author or the viewer that the lexiasymbols located in box 1770 are considered by the author to be “glossaryitems.” What is meant by “glossary items” is solely at the discretion ofthe author. In the embodiment of FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, placing lexiasymbols in box 1770 or grouping lexia symbols in any other manner on thecontents map does not imply or create any links or any other structuralrelationship between the lexia represented by the lexia symbols.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, the contents of a currentlyselected lexia is displayed in lexia display window 1720. In the exampleof FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, the name of the currently selected lexia,“Overview”, is displayed in title bar 1775, and a summary description isdisplayed in summary window 1776.

The currently selected lexia is also identified in contents map 1710 andnavigation window 1730 by highlighting the lexia symbol representing theselected lexia.

In the embodiment of FIG. 17 a, lexia symbol 1745 representing theselected lexia in contents map window 1710 is highlighted by changingits color from its normal color to a highlighted color. In FIG. 17 ahighlighting of lexia symbol 1745 is indicated by representing lexiasymbol 1745 by a white dot

In the embodiment of FIG. 17 b, caricature 1746 representing theselected lexia in contents map window 1710 is highlighted by changingits color from its normal color to a highlighted color. In FIG. 17 ahighlighting of caricature 1746 is indicated by short lines 1747extending radially from caricature 1746.

In FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, lexia symbol 1762 representing the selectedlexia in navigation window 1730 is highlighted by changing its colorfrom its normal color. In FIGS. 17 a and 17 b highlighting of lexiasymbol 1762 is indicated by representing lexia symbol 1762 by a whitedot.

As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, any of a variety ofother means can be used to highlight the lexia symbols of a selectedlexia to identify a selected lexia.

One method that can be used to create links between lexia using thecontents map of the present invention is shown in FIGS. 17 a and 17 b.In the example shown in FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, a link is created from theword “data” in the second line of the first paragraph of the lexiadisplayed in lexia display window 1720 to the lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1755 and caricature 1756, respectively, in contents map window1710.

As shown in FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, the first step in creating the link,(indicated by circled number “1”) is to identify the origin of the linkin the lexia displayed in lexia display window 1720. In the embodimentshown in FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, the origin of the link is identified bypositioning a mouse cursor 1781 over the origin and clicking a mousebutton. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, the origin isidentified by a box 1782 around the word “data”.

In one embodiment of the invention, clicking a mouse button on alocation in the lexia display window brings up a pop-up menu that allowsa variety of actions to be selected. One of the actions that can beselected is creating a link. In one embodiment, the creating a link isthe default mode of action for a mouse click on the lexia displaywindow.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, once the origin of a link hasbeen identified, the target lexia of the link is identified. In theembodiment of FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, the target lexia is identified bypositioning a mouse cursor 1790 over the lexia symbol in contents mapwindow 1710 representing the target lexia and selecting the lexia, forexample by clicking a mouse button. A link is then automatically createdbetween the origin identified in lexia display window 1720 and the lexiarepresented by the selected lexia symbol. In one embodiment of theinvention, a target lexia can be specified by selecting thecorresponding lexia symbol either in contents map window 1710 or innavigation window 1730.

The step of positioning a cursor over the symbol for the target lexia isindicated by the circled number “2” in FIGS. 17 a and 17 b. As shown inFIGS. 17 a and 17 b, in this embodiment, positioning a cursor over alexia symbol in contents map window 1710 causes the underlying lexiasymbol to be identified both in contents map window 1710 and innavigation window 1730 by a spaced outline around the periphery of thelexia symbol. Accordingly, positioning cursor 1790 over lexia symbol1755 in contents map window 1710 of FIG. 17 a causes spaced outlines1792 and 1793 to be displayed around lexia symbol 1755 in contents mapwindow 1710 and lexia symbol 1760 in navigation window 1730,respectively. Similarly, in the embodiment of FIG. 17 b, positioningcursor 1790 over lexia caricature 1756 in contents map window 1710 ofFIG. 17 b causes spaced outlines 1795 and 1793 to be displayed aroundcaricature 1756 and lexia symbol 1760, respectively.

In one embodiment of the invention, similar outlines appear around lexiasymbols in the content map window and the navigation window when acursor is positioned over a location that is an origin of a link in thelexia display window. In this case, the outline identifies the lexiasymbols representing the lexia that is the target of the link thatbegins at the cursor location.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 17 a and 17 b, positioning a cursor over alexia symbol in contents map window 1710 causes a pop-up label 1799 tobe displayed that shows the title of the lexia represented by the lexiasymbol over which the cursor is positioned. In the examples of FIGS. 17a and 17 b, the title of the lexia is “Lexia Data”. In one embodiment ofthe invention, the title and/or the summary of a lexia are displayedwhen a cursor is positioned over a lexia symbol representing the lexia.In other embodiments, other data fields of the underlying lexia may bedisplayed, and different data fields may be displayed in an editing modethan in a viewing mode. The fields that are displayed may be userselectable. For example, in one embodiment, an author may elect todisplay a nickname field and a summary field during editing, and a titlefield and a summary field during viewing.

In the embodiment of FIG. 17 a, the activation area for the link that iscreated from the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1745 to the lexiarepresented by lexia symbol 1755 consists of a word from the text of thelexia represented by lexia symbol 1745, namely the word “data.” In thiscase, activation area for a link comprises text taken from the sourcelexia. In other embodiments, the activation area for a link may comprisetext taken from the source lexia, text taken from the target lexia, or adata field such as a title or summary extracted from either the sourceor target lexia, as selected by the user.

The present invention allows the placement of special purpose or specialfunction graphical elements onto the contents map that operate on lexiasymbols that are placed or “dropped” on or near the special purposeelements. The special purpose elements include elements that provideformatting and that create links.

The operation of an element that creates links in one embodiment of thepresent invention is shown in FIGS. 18 a-c.

FIG. 18 a shows a display screen 1800 during the creation of ahypermedia work for one embodiment of the present invention. Displayscreen 1800 contains contents map window 1810, lexia display window1820, navigation window 1830, and scrolling frame 1840. The position ofscrolling frame 1840 indicates the portion of the contents map that isbeing displayed in contents map display window 1810. In FIG. 18 a, thedisplay mode being used for contents map window 1810 is a mode in whichlexia symbols in the form of colored dots are used to represent lexia.

The portion of the contents map displayed in contents map window 1810contains a number of lexia symbols that have been arranged by the authorof the hypermedia work being created into groups that are useful to theauthor. Lexia symbols 1850, 1851 and 1852 form one group. Lexia symbol1851 is highlighted, indicating that the lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1851 is the currently selected lexia whose content is beingdisplayed in lexia display window 1820. Lexia symbols 1853, 1854, 1855,and 1856 form a second group. Lexia symbols 1857, 1858, 1859, and 1860form a third group. The author has also created floating text labels1870, 1871, and 1872 adjacent to the three groups of lexia symbols,respectively, to help the author identify the groups.

The three groups of lexia displayed in contents map window 1810 are alsodisplayed as groups of lexia symbols 1861, 1862 and 1863, respectively,in the portion of navigation window 1830 within scrolling window 1840.Navigation window 1830 also contains three additional groups of lexiasymbols 1864, 1865 and 1866. These lexia symbols are outside of theportion of the contents map being displayed in contents map window 1810and are therefore not currently displayed in contents map window 1810. Alexia symbol contained in navigation window 1830 but not currentlydisplayed in contents map window 1810 can be displayed by movingscrolling window 1840 to encompass the desired lexia symbol.

In the embodiment of FIG. 18 a, the author has also caused a specialfunction element 1875 to be created and displayed in contents mapdisplay window 1810. In one embodiment of the present invention, specialfunction element 1875 may be created by an author by positioning acursor over the desired location for the special function element andclicking a mouse button. In response, a pop-up menu appears from whichthe author can choose the type of element the author wishes to create.In one embodiment of the invention, the menu choices for types ofelements include lexia, formatting elements, link creation elements, andothers.

The graphical representation of a special function element displayed incontents map window 1810 is not restricted to any particular form andsize. Different representations may be used for different types ofspecial function elements. Representations of special function elementsmay include, without limitation, text, geometric designs, drawings,images, photographs and symbols, and may be static, dynamic, oranimated.

In the embodiment of FIG. 18 a, special function element 1875 isdisplayed in the form of a bar in contents map window 1810. Specialfunction element 1875 is also displayed in the form of a smaller bar1876 in navigation window 1830. Thus the same general form ofrepresentation for special function element 1875 is used in contents mapwindow 1810 and navigation window 1830. In other embodiments, differentforms of representation may be used in each of navigation window 1830and contents map window 1810.

In the embodiment of FIG. 18 a, a special function element displayed asa bar constitutes an ordered link creation element. This type of elementcreates ordered links between lexia represented by lexia symbols placed,for example by “dragging and dropping” using a mouse, on or near theimage of the element displayed in contents map window 1810. In oneembodiment of the invention, a symbol must be placed directly on aspecial function element in order for the special function element tooperate on the lexia represented by the lexia symbol. In anotherembodiment, a symbol placed sufficiently near but not directly on aspecial function element is considered to be located on the element suchthat the element operates on the corresponding lexia. In one embodiment,a special function element has a “snap-to” feature such that symbolsplaced sufficiently near but not on the element are automatically movedonto the element.

FIG. 18 b shows the display window 1800 of FIG. 18 a after lexia symbols1850, 1851, and 1853 have been dragged and dropped, using a mouse, ontoordered link creation element 1875. The resultant configuration of lexiasymbols is also shown in navigation window 1830. In the embodiment ofFIG. 18 b, placing lexia symbols on an ordered link creation elementcreates links among the lexia represented by the lexia symbols placed onthe link creation element according to the order of placement of thelexia symbols on the link creation element. In the embodiment of FIG. 18a, “next” and “previous” links are created between the lexia representedby any two adjacent lexia symbols on ordered link creation element 1875.

In FIG. 18 b, lexia display window 1820 shows “previous” and “next” linkactivation buttons 1880 and 1881, respectively, created by placing lexiasymbol 1851 between lexia symbols 1850 and 1853 on ordered link creationelement 1875. Lexia symbol 1851 is highlighted, indicating that thelexia represented by lexia symbol 1851 is the currently selected lexiathat is being displayed in lexia display window 1820.

In the embodiment of FIG. 18 b, placing a first lexia symbol to theright of a second lexia symbol on an ordered link creation element suchas ordered link creation element 1875 creates a “previous” link from thelexia represented by the first lexia symbol to the lexia represented bythe second lexia symbol. Accordingly, in the embodiment of FIG. 18 b,previous links are established from the lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1851 to the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1850, and from thelexia represented by lexia symbol 1853 to the lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1851. In the embodiment of FIG. 18 b, the lexia represented bylexia symbol 1851 is displayed in lexia display window 1820. Theprevious link from the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1851 to thelexia represented by lexia symbol 1850 is represented by previous button1880. Activating previous button 1880 causes the lexia represented bythe lexia symbol 1850 to become selected and displayed in lexia displayarea 1820.

In a similar manner, in the embodiment of FIG. 18 b, placing a firstlexia symbol to the left of a second lexia symbol on an ordered linkcreation element such as ordered link creation element 1875 creates a“next” link from the lexia represented by the first lexia symbol to thelexia represented by the second lexia symbol. Accordingly, in theembodiment of FIG. 18 b, next links are established from the lexiarepresented by lexia symbol 1850 to the lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1851, and from the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1851 to thelexia represented by lexia symbol 1853. In the embodiment of FIG. 18 b,the next link from the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1851 to thelexia represented by lexia symbol 1853 is represented by next button1881. Activating next button 1881 causes the lexia represented by thelexia symbol 1853 to become selected and displayed in lexia display area1820.

Link activation buttons 1880 and 1881 created by ordered link creationelement 1875 may have labels other than the “Previous” and “Next” labelsshown in FIG. 18 b. For example, in one embodiment, the labels used forlink activation buttons 1880 and 1881 are the titles extracted from thetarget lexia. In other embodiments, other labels may be used.

In one embodiment of the invention, the arrangement of lexia symbols ona link creation element is changeable. The order of lexia symbols on alink creation element can be changed, lexia symbols can be freely addedand removed, at any location on a link creation element, and the spacingbetween lexia symbols on a link creation element can vary. In oneembodiment, the links created by the link creation element areautomatically revised according to any changes made to the compositionand configuration of lexia symbols on the link creation element.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the ordered links created byplacing lexia symbols on ordered link creation element 1875 may be inthe form of an ordered list instead of in the form of next/previouslinks. In one embodiment, the type of link created by ordered linkcreation element 1875 can be selected by an author when the linkcreation element is created, and can also be changed by editing the linkcreation element after creation.

FIG. 18 c shows an embodiment in which the ordered links created byordered link creation element 1875 have been selected by the author tobe in the form of ordered lists. In this embodiment, as compared to theembodiment of FIG. 18 b, an additional lexia symbol 1856 has beendropped onto ordered link creation element 1875 between lexia symbols1851 and 1853. Ordered link creation element 1875 now contains fourlexia symbols. In this embodiment, a link is created from each lexiarepresented by a lexia symbol on ordered link creation element 1875 toeach lexia represented by each of the other lexia symbols on orderedcreation element 1875. Because there are a total of four lexia symbolson ordered link creation element 1875 in FIG. 18 c, for each lexiasymbol, there are three other lexia symbols on ordered link creationelement 1875. Accordingly, for each lexia represented by a lexia symbolon ordered link creation element 1875, links are created to three otherlexia. These links are represented in a lexia by a list of the titles ofthe lexia that are the targets of the links. The embodiment of FIG. 18 cautomatically extracts the titles from the lexia represented by lexiasymbols on ordered link creation element 1875 and inserts these titles,in the form of a list, as link activation areas into the other lexiarepresented by lexia symbols on ordered link creation element 1875. Thetitles are arranged in an order corresponding to the order that thelexia symbols are arranged on ordered link creation element 1875. In theembodiment of FIG. 18 c, the title of the lexia in which the links arebeing created is also extracted and displayed as part of the list oftitles. However, this title does not form a link activation area. It isincluded to provide a complete list of the lexia that are grouped onlink creation element 1875. In another embodiment, the title of thelexia in which the links are being created is omitted from the list oftitles.

FIG. 18 c shows the resulting list 1890 of titles that is inserted inthe lexia represented by highlighted lexia symbol 1851 in one embodimentof the invention. List 1890, contained in a frame 1835, consists of thetitles of the lexia represented by the lexia symbols arranged on orderedlink creation element 1875 in the order in which the corresponding lexiasymbols 1850, 1851, 1856, and 1853 appear on ordered link creationelement 1875. Title 1891, “Table of Contents,” is thus the title of thelexia represented by lexia symbol 1850, title 1892, “Overview,” is thetitle of the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1851 (which is also thecurrently displayed lexia into which the list is being inserted), title1893, “Example 1” is the title of the lexia represented by lexia symbol1856, and title 1994, “Example 2,” is the title of the lexia representedby lexia symbol 1853. Titles 1891, 1893 and 1894 constitute linkactivation areas to the corresponding lexia. Selecting any of the titles1891, 1893 and 1894 in list 1890, for example by positioning a cursorover a title and activating a mouse button, causes the lexia having theselected title to be displayed. Title 1892 is the title of the currentlydisplayed lexia, and does not constitute a link activation area.

In a similar manner, lists of links are inserted into the lexiarepresented by lexia symbols 1850, 1856 and 1853.

In the embodiment of FIG. 18 c, the list of links inserted into each ofthe lexia represented by lexia symbols on ordered link creation element1875 consists of a list of the titles of the lexia extracted from thelexia. In other embodiments, the list may consist of other and/oradditional items. For example, the list may consist of the title and thesummary for each lexia, or the summary only, or the nickname, or someother data field extracted from each of the underlying lexia.

In one embodiment of ordered link creation element 1875, a criteriaother than the relative position of lexia symbols on ordered linkcreation element 1875 may be used to determine the target lexia of“next” and “previous” links or the links contained on a table of linkscreated by link creation element 1875. In one embodiment, ordered linkcreation element 1875 includes an “autosort” capability that sorts thelexia represented by lexia symbols placed on the element according to auser selectable criteria. For example, in one embodiment, the lexia aresorted according to the lexia titles. If the links created by thisembodiment of an ordered link creation element are represented in theform of “next” and “previous” links in a lexia, the target lexia of such“next” and “previous” links are the lexia whose titles come immediatelyafter and immediately before the lexia in which the links are beingcreated in an alphabetical listing of their titles. Alternatively, ifthe links are represented by a list of titles to the target lexia, thetarget lexia are arranged in the list according to the alphabeticalorder of their titles. In other embodiments, other sort criteria may beused. In one embodiment, the lexia symbols are automatically rearrangedon link creation element 1875 to reflect the autosorted order of theunderlying lexia. In another embodiment, the autosorting feature doesnot change the arrangement of the lexia symbols.

In one embodiment of the invention, if any data field of a first lexiais changed, and that data field is used in a second lexia, for examplefor identifying a link, the change to the data field is reflected in thesecond lexia. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 18 c, if the titleof the lexia represented by lexia 1856 is changed from “Example 1” to “ASimple Example”, the new title “A Simple Example” will appear in list oflinks 1890 in the place of the old title “Example 1” after the change ismade.

In one embodiment of the invention, a list of links such as list 1890 ofFIG. 1890 is editable in lexia display window 1820 when lexia displaywindow is in an editing mode. Changes made in the list are reflectedback into the underlying lexia and into contents map window 1810, asappropriate. For example, if list of links 1890 is edited in lexiadisplay window 1820 so as to interchange the positions of the titles“Table of Contents” and “Overview”, the order of the corresponding lexiasymbols 1850 and 1851 is reversed in contents map window 1810.Similarly, if the title of a new lexia is added to list 1890 in lexiadisplay window 1820, a corresponding lexia symbol is added to the lexiasymbols on ordered link creation element 1875 in contents map window1810.

The special purpose graphical elements of the present invention such asordered link creation element 1875 may include “inheritance properties”that are automatically or optionally applied to lexia represented bylexia symbols placed on the special purpose graphical elements. Examplesof inheritance properties are page and text formats that areautomatically applied to a lexia when its lexia symbol is placed on thespecial purpose graphical elements. One embodiment of the inventionincludes graphical formatting elements that perform no other functionother than providing inheritance properties to lexia represented bylexia symbols placed on such formatting elements.

In the embodiment of FIG. 18 c, ordered link creation element 1875contains inheritance properties that specify the layout, placement andappearance of the lists of links that are added to lexia represented bylexia symbols that have been placed on ordered link creation element1875. These inheritance properties specify that the list is to bedisplayed in a frame at a specified location on the underlying lexia,that particular font types, sizes and colors are to be used in the list,and that the background color of the frame into which the list is placedis to have a specified color. A consistent look is thus created for thelexia corresponding to the lexia elements placed on ordered linkcreation element 1875.

In one embodiment, the inheritance properties provided by a linkcreation element may include items unrelated to the links being createdby the link creation element. For example, an inheritance property mayspecify the general page layout to be applied to each lexia representedby a lexia symbol placed on the link creation element. The link creationelement may specify such items as the position of titles, text, andgraphic frames on the underlying lexia, the types, colors, and sizes offonts used, the background wallpaper, if any used for the lexia, andother page layout features.

FIG. 26 is a block diagram of the process used to modify links inresponse to changes to a link creation element in one embodiment of thepresent invention. As shown in FIG. 26, the process starts whennotification is received that a change has been made to a link creationelement at block 2610. At block 2612 a determination is made as towhether the change involved the removal of a lexia symbol from the linkcreation element. If a lexia symbol was removed from the link creationelement, a determination is made at block 2620 as to whether the linkcreation element imposes inheritance properties on the lexia representedby lexia symbols placed on the link creation element. If the linkcreation element imposes inheritance properties, those inheritanceproperties are removed from the lexia represented by the removed lexiasymbol at block 2622. Links to and from the lexia represented by theremoved lexia symbol are removed at block 2624. A determination is madeat block 2626 as to whether there are any other remaining lexia symbolson the link creation element. If there are no other lexia symbols on thelink creation element, the process ends at block 2632.

If there are other lexia symbols remaining on the link creation element,the relative positions of those lexia symbols with respect to each otheris determined at block 2628, and links corresponding to the relativepositions of the lexia symbols on the link creation element are createdat block 2630.

If a determination is made at block 2620 that the link creation elementdoes not impose any inheritance properties, the process skips block 2622and goes directly to block 2624.

If it is determined at block 2612 that the change to the link creationelement does not involve removal of a lexia symbol, a determination ismade at block 2614 as to whether the change involves addition of a lexiasymbol to the link creation element. If the change does not involve theaddition of a lexia symbol, the process continues to block 2626.

If the change does involve the addition of a lexia symbol, adetermination is made at block 2616 as to whether the link creationelement imposes any inheritance properties. If the link creation elementdoes not impose any inheritance properties, the process continues toblock 2626.

If the link creation element does impose inheritance properties, theinheritance properties are applied to the lexia represented by the lexiasymbol that has been placed on the link creation element at block 2618.The process then continues to block 2626.

In the embodiment of FIG. 26, inheritance properties are imposed by aspecial purpose element at the time a lexia symbol is placed on thespecial purpose element, and are stored as part of the underlying lexia.In another embodiment, inheritance properties of a special purposeelement are imposed only when needed. For example, in one embodiment ofthe invention, formatting inheritance properties are only imposed on thelexia when the lexia is being formatted, either for display on a displayscreen or for generating a caricature or an exportable representation ofthe lexia. In this embodiment, when a lexia symbol is selected fordisplay, a determination is made as to whether the lexia symbol is onany special purpose element that imposes formatting inheritanceproperties. If such a special purpose element is found, its inheritanceproperties are incorporated in the displayed lexia. If a lexia symbol issubsequently removed from a special purpose element that imposesinheritance properties, the next time the lexia symbol is selected, thelexia will be displayed without those inheritance properties.

In one embodiment, special purpose formatting elements provide formatand layout related inheritance properties without providing otherfunctions such as creating links. FIG. 18 e shows one embodiment of aspecial purpose formatting element 1888 of the present invention. Asshown in FIG. 18 e, in this embodiment, special purpose formattingelement 1888 is displayed in contents map display window 1810 as ashaded rectangle with rounded corners containing a white rectangle witha black line under the rectangle. Formatting element 1888 is alsodisplayed in navigation window 1830 as shaded rectangle 1889. Lexiasymbol 1855 has been placed onto formatting element 1888 in contentswindow 1810. Accordingly, the formatting inheritance properties offormatting element 1888 are applied to the lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1855.

The lexia represented by lexia symbol 1855 is displayed in lexia displaywindow 1820. In the embodiment of FIG. 18 e, the formatting inheritanceproperties of formatting element 1888 for the lexia represented by alexia placed on formatting element 1888 specify a page layout consistingof a frame for a graphic centered at the top of the lexia, a headlinehaving a first designated font centered below the graphic frame, and abody of text having a second designated font left justified below theheadline. These features. are shown in lexia display window 1820 of FIG.18 e as frame 1882, headline 1883, and body text 1884, respectively. Thesame page layout is applied to the lexia represented by any other lexiasymbol placed on formatting element 1888.

In one embodiment of the invention, special purpose elements may beplaced on other special purpose elements. For example, a link creationelement may be placed on a formatting element. The formattinginheritance properties of the formatting element will then be applied tothe links created by the link creation element and/or the lexiarepresented by lexia symbols on the link creation element.

In one embodiment of the invention, a special purpose element such asordered link creation element 1875 may be manipulated and edited incontents map window 1810. For example, a special purpose element may beselected, dragged and dropped, and changed in length, size, andorientation. In one embodiment of the invention, moving a specialpurpose element, for example by dragging and dropping using a mouse,moves the special purpose element without moving any lexia symbols thathad been placed onto the special purpose element. As a result, linksthat had been created between the lexia represented by the lexia symbolsthat are no longer on the special purpose element are destroyed. Inanother embodiment, the author may select an option for the specialpurpose element that causes lexia symbols placed on the special purposeelement to be “glued” to the element so that when the element moves, thelexia symbols placed on it move as well. In this case, links createdbetween lexia by the special purpose element are preserved. In oneembodiment, such “gluing” optionally only applies one way from theelement to the lexia symbols placed on the element such that moving theelement moves the lexia symbols placed on the element, but moving alexia symbol does not move the element. In one embodiment, selecting aspecial purpose element allows parameters of the special purpose elementto be edited. In one embodiment, the editable parameters include thefunction performed by the element (for example, whether the element isto be a link creation element, a formatting element, or another type ofelement), the type of function (for example, the specific type of linkthat is to be created, in the case of a link creation element, or theformat that is to be applied, in the case of a formatting element),whether lexia symbols become glued to the element once placed on theelement so that if the element is moved, the lexia symbols move as well,whether the element is displayed when the contents map window isdisplayed in either an editing mode, a viewing mode, or both, whetherthe element provides any inheritance properties that are applied tolexia represented by lexia symbols placed on the element, and otherparameters. An element may also include editable data fields associatedwith the element, similar to the data fields associated with a lexia,such as data fields a name, a nickname, a summary description, an indexvalue, or other data.

In one embodiment of the invention, links can be created from a lexia toa special purpose element in the same manner as links are createdbetween lexia in the embodiment of FIGS. 17 a and 17 b. For example, alink between a currently displayed lexia and a special purpose elementmay be created by clicking on the desired location for the linkactivation area for the link in the lexia display window and thenselecting the special purpose element in the contents map display windowas the target of the link. Depending upon the option chosen by the user,the link activation area for the link may be represented by text or datafields from the source lexia, text or data fields from the targetspecial purpose element, or text or data fields from the lexiarepresented by any lexia symbols that have been placed on the specialpurpose element.

FIG. 18 f shows an example of a link from a lexia to a special purposeelement in one embodiment of the present invention. The link was createdin a manner similar to that described above with respect to theembodiments of FIGS. 17 a and 17 b. In FIG. 18 f, lexia symbol 1852 ishighlighted and the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1852 is displayedin lexia display window 1820. A link has been created from the lexiarepresented by lexia symbol 1852 to special purpose element 1875 incontents map window 1810. The link activation area for the link wasdesignated by positioning a cursor over the desired location in lexiadisplay window 1820 and clicking a mouse button. The target of the linkwas then selected by positioning the cursor over special purpose element1875 clicking a mouse button. FIG. 18 f shows the subsequent state ofthe display screen. Cursor 1841 remains positioned over special purposeelement 1875 in contents map window 1810. A border 1843 around specialpurpose element 1875 indicates that cursor 1841 is positioned overspecial purpose element 1875. As a result of creation of the link, alink activation area 1844 has been inserted into the source lexia at thelocation specified for the link activation area for the link. The makeupof the link activation area 1844 inserted in a source lexia as a resultof creation of a link to a special purpose element depends on the typeof special purpose element to which the link is established and on thetype of activation area representation selected by the user. In theembodiment of FIG. 18 f, the special purpose element 1875 to which thelink has been established is an ordered link creation element. Thecorresponding configuration of the link activation area 1844 for theembodiment of FIG. 18 f is a list of link activation areas comprisingthe titles of the lexia represented by the lexia symbols on specialpurpose element 1875. In other embodiments, the link activation area toa special purpose element may consist of text or data fields from thesource lexia, text or data fields from the special purpose element, textor data fields from the lexia represented by lexia symbols located onthe special purpose element, or other items.

FIG. 18 d shows an embodiment of the present invention that includes aspecial purpose element 1895 that creates a parent-child hierarchicalrelationship between a lexia or a group of lexia and another lexia or agroup of lexia. In FIG. 18 d, hierarchical link creation element 1895,represented by a dotted arrow, has been added to contents map window1810 of the embodiment of FIG. 18 c. Hierarchical link creation element1895 creates a parent-child link between lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1852 at the tail of the arrow and, in the embodiment of FIG. 18d, ordered link creation element 1875 at the head of the arrow. In otherembodiments, hierarchical link creation element 1895 may connect a lexiasymbol to a lexia symbol, a special purpose element to a lexia symbol, aspecial purpose element to another special purpose element.

The links created by hierarchical link creation element 1895 are shownin lexia display window 1820. In FIG. 18 d, lexia symbol 1852 ishighlighted in contents map window 1810. Accordingly, the contents ofthe lexia represented by lexia symbol 1852 is displayed in lexia displaywindow 1820. The links created by hierarchical link creation element1895 in the embodiment of FIG. 18 d appear as a list of links 1897. Linklist 1897 consists of a list of the titles extracted from each of thelexia on hierarchical link creation element 1895. Each title functionsas a link activation area activating a link from the lexia representedby lexia symbol 1852 to each of the lexia represented by lexia symbols1850, 1851, 1856 and 1853 on ordered link creation element 1875.

In other embodiments, the links created by hierarchical link creationelement 1875 in the parent lexia represented by lexia symbol 1852 maytake forms other than list 1897 in FIG. 18 d. For example, in oneembodiment, the links are added to the parent lexia in the form of apull down menu. Other manifestations of links created by the linkcreation elements of the present invention will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art.

In the embodiment of FIG. 18 d, the links created by hierarchical linkcreation element 1895 are one way links. In this embodiment,hierarchical link creation element 1895 creates links from the lexiasymbol or other element at the tail of hierarchical link creationelement 1895 to the lexia symbol or other element at the head ofhierarchical link creation element 1895, but does not create links theother way.

In one embodiment of the invention, hierarchical link creation element1895 is created by clicking a mouse button on contents map window 1810,choosing a “create hierarchical link” option from a pop up window, andindicating the tail and head locations of the desired hierarchical link.

In the embodiment of FIG. 18 d, hierarchical link creation element 1895creates links from the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1852 to each ofthe lexia represented by the lexia symbols on ordered link creationelement 1875. One embodiment of the invention includes hierarchical linkcreation elements that create links only to the lexia represented bylexia symbols placed at particular locations on link creation elementssuch as ordered link creation element 1875. For example, onehierarchical link creation element creates a link only to the lexiarepresented by the first lexia symbol on a link creation element.Another example hierarchical link creation element creates a link onlyto the lexia represented by the last lexia symbol on a link creationelement. In one embodiment, a hierarchical link creation element,displayed as an arrow in the contents map window of the presentinvention, creates a link only to the lexia represented by a lexiasymbol, if any, located at the position indicated by the tip of thearrow. Other variations of the hierarchical link creation element of thepresent invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

FIG. 19 a shows a table link creation element 1910 of one embodiment ofthe present invention. In this embodiment, a table link creation elementappears as a grid in contents map window 1910. It is also displayed as asmaller grid 1902 in navigation window 1830. Table link creation element1910 creates links between lexia represented by lexia symbols placed atthe intersection points of the grid lines making up table link creationelement 1910. In the embodiment of FIG. 19 a, table link creationelement 1910 contains nine intersection points. Six of the nineintersection points are occupied by lexia symbols 1853, 1855, 1854,1856, 1912 and 1914, respectively.

The links created by the table link creation element of the presentinvention can have a variety of forms. In the embodiment of FIG. 19 a,links are created from each lexia represented by a lexia symbol placedat an intersection point of the table link creation element to eachlexia represented by lexia symbols, if any, located immediately above,below, to the left, and to the right of the lexia symbol.

Lexia display window 1820 of FIG. 19 a shows the links created for thelexia represented by highlighted lexia symbol 1856 by table linkcreation element 1910 in the embodiment of FIG. 19 a. Lexia symbol 1855is located immediately above, lexia symbol 1914 is located immediatelybelow, lexia symbol 1854 is located immediately to the left, and lexiasymbol 1912 is located immediately to the right, of lexia symbol 1856 ontable link creation element 1910. Accordingly, table link creationelement 1910 creates a link from the lexia represented by lexia symbol1856 to the lexia represented by lexia symbols 1855, 1914, 1854 and1912. These links are represented by link activation buttons 1915, 1920,1925 and 1927, respectively. Activating link activation button 1915 willbring up the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1855. Activating linkactivation button 1920 will bring up the lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1914. Activating link activation button 1925 will bring up thelexia represented by lexia symbol 1854. Activating link activationbutton 1927 will bring up the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1912.

In the embodiment of FIG. 19 a, link activation buttons 1915, 1920, 1925and 1927 are labeled “Up”, “Down”, “Left” and “Right”, respectively. Inother embodiments, other labels may be used. In one embodiment, thelabels used are the names of the target lexia extracted from the targetlexia. In other embodiments, the labels used may consist of data fromother data fields of a lexia such as a summary, a nickname, or otherdata.

FIG. 19 b shows an embodiment of the present invention in which thelinks created by table link creation element 1910 are in the form of atable 1900. In FIG. 19 b, lexia symbol 1912 is highlighted in contentsmap window 1810 and the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1912 isdisplayed in lexia display window 1820. In the embodiment of FIG. 19 b,for each lexia represented by a lexia symbol occupying a gridintersection point of table link creation element 1910, a table iscreated containing links to each lexia represented by each other lexiasymbol occupying an intersection point of table link creation element1910. The links are arranged in the table in a manner that correspondsto the position of the corresponding lexia symbols on table linkcreation element 1910.

Lexia display window 1820 of FIG. 19 b shows the table 1900 in the lexiarepresented by lexia symbol 1912 created by placing lexia symbol 1912 ontable link creation element 1910 in the location shown in FIG. 19 b.Table 1900 contains entries corresponding to the lexia symbols locatedon table link creation element 1910. For the lexia represented by lexiasymbol 1912, the table entry consists of an identifier for the lexiarepresented by lexia symbol 1912. In the embodiment of FIG. 19 b, theidentifier used is the title of the lexia as extracted from the lexia.For lexia other than the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1912, theentries in table 1900 consist of link activation areas to the respectivelexia. In the embodiment of FIG. 19 b, the link activation areas consistof the titles of the target lexia as extracted from the lexiathemselves. In other embodiments, other data fields of the underlyinglexia, such as a summary or nickname, may be used.

Table 1900 consists of three columns of entries corresponding to thethree vertical grid lines of table link creation element 1910.

The first column contains link activation areas 1930 and 1931, whichcreate links to the lexia represented by lexia symbols 1853 and 1854,respectively, located on the first vertical grid line 1950 of table linkcreation element 1910. The first column of table 1900 thus correspondsto the first vertical grid line 1950 of table link creation element1910.

The second column of table 1900 contains link activation areas 1932,1933 and 1934, which create links to the lexia represented by lexiasymbols 1855, 1856, and 1914, respectively, located on the secondvertical grid line 1951 of table link creation element 1910. The secondcolumn of table 1900 thus corresponds to the second vertical grid line1951 of table link creation element 1910.

The third column of table 1900 contains lexia identifier 1935corresponding to the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1912 on the thirdvertical grid line 1952 of table link creation element 1910. The thirdvertical grid line 1952 of table link creation element 1910 contains nolexia symbols other than lexia symbol 1912 itself. Accordingly, thereare no other entries is the third column of table 1900. However, ifthere were additional lexia symbols on third vertical grid line 1952,corresponding link activation areas would be created in correspondinglocations in the third column of table 1900.

In one embodiment of the invention, instead of containing an identifiersuch as the title of the lexia, table 1900 contains a blank entry at thetable location corresponding to the lexia in which table 1900 is beingcreated.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that links created byplacing lexia symbols on a table link creation element of the presentinvention can be represented in a variety of manners other than the linkactivation buttons of FIG. 19 a and the link activation areas of table1900 of FIG. 19 b. It will also be apparent to those skilled in the artthat the link creation elements of the present invention, which createlinks between the lexia represented by lexia symbols placed or “dropped”on the element, can have a variety of other configurations than theexample configurations shown in FIGS. 18 a-d and 19 a-b.

The present invention provides a search function that allows searches tobe made of the content of each of the lexia of a hypermedia work. In oneembodiment of the present invention, the lexia symbol representing eachlexia that contains the searched for content is indicated both in thecontents map window and in the navigation window of the presentinvention. In one embodiment of the invention, the search functionincludes the ability to search non-displayed data of a lexia, such asthe title, summary, and nickname. In one embodiment, a search can belimited to specified portions or data fields of lexia. For example, asearch can be limited to the non-displayed nicknames of lexia, or tonicknames and summaries, or to titles and displayed content.

FIG. 20 illustrates a search function provided by one embodiment of thepresent invention. FIG. 20 shows the results of a search for the textphrase “link creation element” in the hypermedia work of FIG. 19 a. Inthis embodiment, each lexia that contains the searched for phrase isindicated by means of a ring around the corresponding lexia symbol.According to FIG. 20, of the lexia whose corresponding lexia symbols aredisplayed in contents map window 1810, the lexia represented by lexiasymbols 1850, 1856, and 1812 contain the searched-for phrase “linkcreation element”. In addition, the hypermedia work of FIG. 20 containstwo other lexia that contain the searched for phrase. The lexia symbolsfor these lexia are not located in the portion of the contents mapdisplayed in contents map window 1810, but are represented by lexiasymbols 2010 and 2015 displayed in navigation window 1830, whichdisplays an image of the entire contents map.

The search function of the present invention provides a navigablegraphical display of the results of a search. Any of the lexiacontaining the searched for content can be accessed by selecting anindicated lexia symbol representing the lexia either in contents mapwindow 1810 or in navigation window 1830. In FIG. 20, the lexiacorresponding to lexia symbol 1856 has been selected, for example byusing a mouse button, and is displayed in lexia display window 1820. Inthis embodiment, when a lexia containing searched for content isdisplayed in lexia display window 1820, the searched for content isindicated in lexia display window 1820. As shown in FIG. 20, thesearched for phrase “link creation element” is found four times in theportion of the lexia represented by lexia symbol 1856 displayed in lexiadisplay window 1820. In the embodiment of FIG. 20, these fouroccurrences 2020, 2025, 2030 and 2035 of the phrase “link creationelement” are indicated by bold and italicized text.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that searches other thansimple text searches can be performed by the present invention. It willalso be apparent to those skilled in the art that a variety of displayelements other than a ring around a lexia symbol can be used to identifylexia containing the searched for item in contents map window 1810 andnavigation window 1830.

In one embodiment of the invention, in addition to highlighting thesearched for item in a displayed lexia, any links in the displayed lexiato other lexia containing the searched for item are also identified byhighlighting. In one embodiment, the search function may search foritems such as links. For example, a search can be requested for alllinks to or from a specific lexia. The results of different searches maybe identified by different types or colors of highlighting.

In one embodiment of the invention, the results of a search may be savedfor later retrieval. In one embodiment, the results of a search remaindisplayed until a specified user action or time-out occurs. For example,in one embodiment, a user may elect to have the results of a searchremain displayed until a user requests another search or until the userissues a cancellation command.

In the embodiment of FIG. 20, navigation window 1830 provides anoverview of the entire contents map of the hypermedia work depicted inFIG. 20. In the embodiment of FIG. 20, navigation window 1830 contains23 lexia symbols. Accordingly, the hypermedia work depicted in FIG. 20contains 23 lexia.

Hypermedia works may be created that contain a thousand or more lexia.Because of limited resolutions of computer display monitors, it may notbe possible to distinctly display a thousand or more lexia symbols in anavigation window the size of navigation window 1830. For hypermediaworks containing large numbers of lexia, one embodiment of the presentinvention utilizes multi-tiered navigation windows according to themethod of patent application Ser. No. 08/298,215. As shown in FIG. 22,in this embodiment, three views of the contents map of a hypermedia workare used.

An overview of the entire contents map is provided by top levelnavigation window 2220. Top level navigation window 2200 containsintermediate scrolling frame 2230 and contents map window scrollingframe 2225. Intermediate scrolling frame 2230 indicates the portion ofthe contents map that is displayed in intermediate level navigationwindow 2210. Contents map window scrolling frame 2225 indicates theportion of the contents map that is displayed in contents map window2200. Either of the two scrolling frames 2225 and 2230 may be moved, forexample by dragging with a mouse, within top level navigation window2220, thereby causing the portion of the contents map displayed incontents map window 220 to change. In one embodiment, draggingintermediate scrolling frame 2230 in top level navigation window 2220moves contents map scrolling frame 2225 in the same manner such that theposition of contents map scrolling frame 2225 with respect tointermediate scrolling frame remains fixed. Dragging contents mapscrolling frame 2225 in top level navigation window 2220, however, doesnot cause intermediate scrolling frame 2225 to move.

Intermediate navigation window 2210 displays the portion of the contentsmap indicated by intermediate scrolling frame 2230 in top levelnavigation window 2220. Intermediate navigation window 2210 containsscrolling frame 2215. Scrolling frame 2215 indicates the portion of thepart of the contents map displayed in intermediate navigation window2210 that is displayed in contents map window 2200. Dragging scrollingframe 2215 in intermediate navigation window 2210 changes the portion ofthe contents map displayed in contents map window 2200.

In the multi-tiered embodiment of FIG. 22, therefore, the portion of thecontents map displayed in contents map window 2200 can therefore bechanged by moving scrolling frame 2215 in intermediate navigation window2210 or by moving intermediate scrolling frame 2230 and/or contents mapscrolling frame 2225 in top level navigation window 2220.

In one embodiment, the scale of top level navigation window 2220 andintermediate navigation window 2210 is chosen such that individual lexiasymbols can be distinctly displayed in intermediate navigation window2210, but not necessarily in top level navigation window 2220. In oneembodiment top level navigation window 2220 displays groups of lexiaand/or regions containing lexia. If the search function of theembodiment of FIG. 20 is used with the embodiment of FIG. 22, all areascontaining the searched for content are indicated in top levelnavigation window 2220. Individual lexia containing the searched forcontent are indicated in intermediate navigation window 2210 and incontents map window 2200.

One embodiment of the present invention allows the lexia for hypermediaworks created with the present invention to be exported as hypertextmarkup language (“HTML”) documents, for example in order to publishworks on the World Wide Web or for use in intranets. In one embodimentof the present invention, an applet written in the JAVA computerlanguage provides contents map window functionality to the resultingHTML documents.

The present invention can be implemented by means of softwareprogramming on any of a variety of one or more computer systems as arewell known in the art, including, without limitation, computer systemssuch as that shown in FIG. 21. The computer system shown in FIG. 21includes a CPU unit 2100 that includes a central processor, main memory,peripheral interfaces, input-output devices, power supply, andassociated circuitry and devices; a display device 2110 which may be acathode ray tube display, LCD display, gas-plasma display, or any othercomputer display; an input device 2130, which may include a keyboard,mouse, digitizer, or other input device. The computer system may or maynot include non-volatile storage 2120, which may include magnetic,optical, or other mass storage devices, and a printer 2150. The computersystem may also include a network interface 2140, which may consist of amodem, allowing the computer system to communicate with other systemsover a communications network such as the Internet. Any of a variety ofother configurations of computer systems may also be used.

Thus a novel hypermedia authoring and publishing system has beenpresented. Although the present invention has been described withrespect to certain example embodiments, it will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to thesespecific embodiments.

1. A display system for representing the content of sets of data comprising: a display screen; and a plurality of graphical elements representing sets of data displayed on said display screen, a first of said graphical elements comprising a caricature based upon a first parameter related to a first of said sets of data.
 2. The display system of claim 1 wherein said sets of data comprise lexia of a hypermedia work.
 3. The display system of claim 1 wherein said first set of data comprises formatted display data displayable on said display screen, and wherein said first parameter comprises a visual appearance of said display data when displayed on said display screen.
 4. The display system of claim 3 wherein said caricature comprises a caricature of a first portion of said visual appearance of said display data.
 5. The display system of claim 4 wherein said formatted display data comprises text data arranged in a plurality of paragraphs, and wherein said caricature comprises caricatures of a first portion of said plurality of paragraphs.
 6. The display system of claim 4 wherein a size of said first portion of said visual appearance of said display data is dependent on a size of said first graphical element.
 7. The display system of claim 1 wherein said caricature comprises a pseudo-randomly generated feature.
 8. The display system of claim 7 wherein said pseudo-randomly generated feature comprises the location of a visual feature of said caricature.
 9. The display system of claim 8 wherein said visual feature comprises a notch along a perimeter of said caricature.
 10. The display system of claim 1 wherein a change to said first set of data that results in a change to said first parameter leads to a corresponding change to said caricature.
 11. The display system of claim 1 wherein said first parameter comprises a time related to said first set of data.
 12. The display system of claim 11 wherein said time related to said first set of data comprises a time of creation of said first set of data.
 13. The display system of claim 11 wherein said time related to said first set of data comprises a time related to an access history of said first set of data.
 14. The display system of claim 1 wherein said caricature based on said first parameter comprises a shape of said first graphical element.
 15. The display system of claim 14 wherein said shape of said first graphical element comprises a rectangle, and wherein a degree of rounding of comers of said rectangle depends upon a value of said first parameter.
 16. The display system of claim 15 wherein said first parameter comprises a count of a number of times that said first set of data is accessed.
 17. The display system of claim 1 wherein said caricature based on said first parameter comprises a color.
 18. The display system of claim 17 wherein said color depends upon a value of said first parameter.
 19. The display system of claim 10 wherein said caricature is updated to reflect a change made to said first set of data.
 20. The display system of claim 1 wherein a visual appearance of said first graphical element and a relative position of said first graphical element on said display screen distinguishes said first set of data from other sets of data.
 21. In a computer system, a method for creating a graphical element representing a set of data, said method comprising the steps of: examining a set of data; identifying a first parameter of said set of data; generating a first representation corresponding to said first parameter; and incorporating said first representation in a graphical element representing said set of data.
 22. The method of claim 21 wherein said set of data comprises a lexia of a hypermedia work.
 23. The method of claim 21 wherein said set of data comprises data displayable on a display device and wherein said first parameter comprises a visual appearance of a portion of said data when displayed on said display device.
 24. The method of claim 21 further comprising the steps of: reexamining said set of data after a triggering event has occurred; identifying any change to said first parameter of said set of data; if a change to said first parameter has occurred, revising said first representation corresponding to said first parameter according to said change; and incorporating said revised first representation in said graphical element representing said set of data.
 25. The method of claim 21 further comprising the steps of: identifying a second parameter of said set of data; generating a second representation corresponding to said second parameter; and incorporating said second representation in said graphical element representing said set of data.
 26. The method of claim 21 further comprising the steps of: identifying plurality of additional parameters of said set of data; generating additional representations corresponding to said additional parameters; and incorporating said additional representations in said graphical element representing said set of data.
 27. A program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for creating a graphical element representing a set of data, said method comprising the steps of: examining a set of data; identifying a first parameter of said set of data; generating a first representation corresponding to said first parameter; and incorporating said first representation in a graphical element representing said set of data.
 28. The program storage device of claim 27 wherein said set of data comprises a lexia of a hypermedia work.
 29. The program storage device of claim 27 wherein said set of data comprises data displayable on a display device and wherein said first parameter comprises a visual appearance of a portion of said data when displayed on said display device.
 30. The program storage device of claim 27 wherein said method further comprises the steps of: reexamining said set of data after a triggering event has occurred; identifying any change to said first parameter of said set of data; if a change to said first parameter has occurred, revising said first representation corresponding to said first parameter according to said change; and incorporating said revised first representation in said graphical element representing said set of data.
 31. The program storage device of claim 27 wherein said method further comprises the steps of: identifying a second parameter of said set of data; generating a second representation corresponding to said second parameter; and incorporating said second representation in said graphical element representing said set of data.
 32. The program storage device of claim 27 wherein said method further comprises the steps of: identifying a plurality of additional parameters of said set of data; generating additional representations corresponding to said additional parameters; and incorporating said additional representations in said graphical element representing said set of data. 